Falsely accused, Luo Shu immediately raised his right hand, shaping it like a blade, ready to chop Eriri's head.
Realising her mistake, Eriri quickly crouched down, covering her head and pleading:
"I'm sorry! Just don't hit my face!!"
Hearing this, Luo Shu's hand froze mid-air. He glared at Eriri angrily, took several deep breaths, and then turned his gaze to survey the others.
Instantly, everyone he looked at began distancing themselves from responsibility.
"Mouri boy, that barbecue place we tried last time was pretty good, wasn't it? Fancy going again?"
"Ah, Inspector Megure, I was just thinking the same. How about today? No, right now would be perfect."
"Heh... heheh..."
Watching the adults play dumb, Conan gave a dry laugh, though internally he had a mountain of complaints.
First, Robert suspected Sayuri Sawamura and Luo Shu of having an affair, hiring Uncle Mouri to investigate.
Then it turned out Luo Shu was actually dating the daughter, Eriri, making him Sayuri's future son-in-law.
That would have been bad enough, but then Robert, who'd hired Uncle Mouri, got murdered, leaving Sayuri a widow.
At this point, it was just a tragic misunderstanding.
But then, the daughter, Eriri, openly admitted she suspected Sayuri and Luo Shu were involved.
What was this? Some real-life prime-time soap opera?
Conan mentally complained endlessly. The only silver lining was that he currently looked like a child, so he didn't need to make excuses to escape like Kogoro Mouri and Juzo Megure.
Though Conan had to admit one thing - Luo Shu's glare was truly terrifying.
At that moment, after glaring at everyone to warn them against speaking out of turn, Luo Shu turned back with a helpless expression towards Sayuri Sawamura, who looked torn between laughter and tears:
"Madam, I think Eriri should take a break from her training for now and be taken back to the Sawamura family by you for some... re-education."
He emphasised the word "re-education" through gritted teeth.
Sayuri Sawamura then smiled sweetly, like a perfectly ripe fruit:
"What a coincidence, I was thinking the same thing."
As she spoke, she turned towards Eriri and called out in a sugary voice:
"Since Luo Shu and I are in agreement, Eriri, remember to stay home obediently tonight and not go anywhere, alright?"
Hearing this blatant conspiracy, Eriri's face turned deathly pale. Her teeth chattered as she stared at them in terror, as if witnessing the scenery of hell itself.
"C-c-can I... refuse?"
"What do you think?" Sayuri replied with a perfect smile, leaving the question hanging.
Seeing that expression, Eriri clutched her head, on the verge of tears. "I... I understand."
Luo Shu coldly observed Eriri's despairing expression before turning to Kogoro Mouri:
"What exactly were Robert's reasons for suspicion?"
Hearing that emotionless tone, Kogoro shuddered and hastily replied:
"Apologies, sir. I'm not privy to those details."
He quickly added:
"Robert only commissioned the investigation without explaining his suspicions. As for why it led to you..."
Kogoro cautiously glanced at Luo Shu, noting his unchanged expression before continuing:
"Around 2 pm, I witnessed your meeting with Madam Sawamura at a café—the location of which was provided by Robert himself."
Hearing this, Sayuri clicked her tongue in irritation:
"Honestly, everything was fine until now. Why must he cause trouble at such a time?"
Her mood visibly soured.
Though the sudden emergence of an infidelity scandal in their otherwise harmonious family disgusted her, the man was already dead. There was little point in dwelling on it.
The priority now was finding the murderer.
"I can only say that my daily schedule is arranged in advance by the household maids. Little Rurukawa would have records, so if Robert wanted that information, he could've obtained it directly from her or accessed the itinerary."
"So we can't rule out the possibility that other staff also saw the schedule?" Juzo Megure rubbed his chin before frowning.
Observing this, Kogoro offered his opinion:
"If you ask me, this was clearly a crime of passion. The culprit must be one of the villa's staff."
However, Luo Shu frowned. "So the killer was someone from outside the villa?"
Megure nodded in agreement. "Highly likely. We'll need to review nearby surveillance footage."
Kogoro gaped in confusion. "Sir Luo, Inspector Megure, I meant the staff inside the villa, not outside!"
At this, Luo Shu and Megure exchanged glances, their expressions turning peculiar.
In the end, it was Luo Shu who was straightforward enough to admit frankly:
"Taking your deductions, Mouri, and guessing the opposite gives you about an 80% accuracy rate. This is common knowledge at the Metropolitan Police Department. Didn't you know that, Mouri boy?"
Kogoro Mouri flushed with embarrassment upon hearing this and awkwardly replied, "Sir, why are you talking like Inspector Megure?"
He was actually quite skilled at deduction, okay? How could they say such things about him!!
'It seems Uncle Mouri's deductive skills aren't very well regarded...' Conan thought with a twitching lip, then narrowed his eyes as he gazed toward the crime scene, pondering:
But honestly, judging by the timing of the incident, it's highly likely the murderer is still inside the villa. The question is, where's the murder weapon?
Thinking this, Conan took advantage of the distracted crowd to slip away unnoticed, heading straight for the crime scene.
This didn't escape Luo Shu's notice, nor even Eriri's sharp eyes.
However, unlike Luo Shu, who knew Conan's true identity, the unaware Eriri assumed the child had some reason for leaving without a word.
Has the Reaper Elementary School student gone to find the killer? Meaning it's probably not a supernatural incident? Could Robert really have been 'Conan-cursed' to death...
Luo Shu narrowed his eyes in thought before turning to Sayuri Sawamura:
"Madam, have Rurukawa prepare a sealed room. We'll get ready so once Utaha arrives, we can begin the interrogation immediately."
"Megure, Mouri, arrange to have everyone in the villa brought in one by one for preliminary individual questioning."
'Sorry, Conan-kun, but compared to your deductions, I trust Mind Reading more...' Luo Shu mused inwardly while glancing toward the corridor window.
Outside the window, a red Ferrari was slowly entering the Sawamura estate under the guidance of officers securing the scene.
Simultaneously, a notification of arrival from Utaha Kasumigaoka came through internal channels.